Could Galectin 3 Be a Good Prognostic Factor in Endometrial Cancer?

Abstract

Galectin 3 is a modulator of several basic biological functions. It may be involved in the development of obesity and type 2 diabetes—risk factors of endometrial cancer. The study involved 144 patients, after abrasion due to postmenopausal bleeding. Galectin 3 concentrations were quantified in serum by multiplex fluorescent bead-based immunoassays. Median serum galectin 3 concentrations revealed significant differences between FIGO III and IV vs. FIGO I and II patients. Statistically higher concentrations were reported for patients with lymph node metastases compared to patients without it (p = 0.001) as well as in patients with lymphovascular space invasion compared to patients without LVSI (p = 0.02). No statistically significant differences were observed for median of galectin 3 levels depending on the surgical procedure (laparoscopy vs. laparotomy, p = 0.0608). Patients with galectin 3 levels exceeding the median value were characterized by overall survival being shorter by 11.9 months. High levels of galectin 3 were correlated with shorter disease-free survival, the difference is up to 14.8 months. Galectin 3 can be an independent prognostic factor in patients with endometrial cancer. Among the recognized prognostic factors and the concentrations of the galectin 3 marker at the adopted time points, the univariate analysis showed a significant effect of staging, grading, and cutoff galectin 3 on the OS. For multivariate analysis, the galectin 3 cutoff point had the greatest significant impact on OS.

Unraveling How Tumor-Derived Galectins Contribute to Anti-Cancer Immunity Failure

“…Simultaneously, tumors produce large amounts of galectins (mainly galectins -1, -3, -7, -8, and -9). As already stated, increased levels of galectins in patients' sera have been reported for several cancer types [27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38]. In such conditions of abundant production and secretion, galectins circulate through biological fluids and reach the thymus.…”

“…As a consequence, increased levels of these galectins are detected in the sera of cancer patients. Until mid-2021, more than 55 independent studies have been recorded in this field (here, and due to space limitations, we only cite some examples on each galectin member [ 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 ]).…”

Role of adipocytokines in endometrial cancer progression

“…However, contradictory results from a study involving 144 patients showed that increased galectin 3 expression was observed in patients with lymphovascular space invasion ( Cymbaluk-Ploska., et al, 2020 ). The mean scores progressively increased from normal endometria (2.58) and atypical hyperplasia (4.77) to clear cell carcinoma (6.71), and significant differences were noted among the various conditions.…”

The Influence of Biologically Active Substances Secreted by the Adipose Tissue on Endometrial Cancer

“…Its concentration strictly correlated with the degree of tumor advancement [ 16 ]. A recent study [ 34 ] analyzed the clinical implications of galactin-3 in patients with endometrial cancer. Apart from the higher galectin-3 levels in EC patients compared to normal endometrium, significantly higher values of galectin-3 levels were found in patients with obesity, type 2 diabetes and increased levels of C-reactive protein and in nulliparous vs. multiparous women.…”